Marth
Marth (マルス, Marusu) is the prince of Altea, son of King Cornelius and his wife Liza, descendent of the hero Anri, and inheritor of both the divine blade Falchion and the task of using it to strike down Medeus, the Earth/Shadow Dragon. Driven from his kingdom by the Dolhr Empire at the onset of the War of Shadows, he took refuge in Talys for two years before departing to amass an army to resist and strike down the empire's grip on Archanea. Years later, he led Altea in the War of Heroes against his corrupted former friend and ally, Emperor Hardin of Archanea. He developed a reputation as a legendary hero, fondly dubbed the " " by the people of Altea. In time, the continent of Archanea came to be united under his rule, and he became renowned throughout history as the legendary "Hero-King" of the Unified Kingdom of Archanea. He is the lead protagonist of four Fire Emblem titles - , , and , and an extra playable character in . He is also arguably more well-known as one of three representatives of the in the Nintendo crossover fighting series, Super Smash Bros. Role Marth and a small retinue of Altean knights had been taking refuge in Talys for the past two years, following the fall of Altea at the hands of the combined forces of Dolhr and Gra in the dawn of the War of Shadows; Talys' King Mostyn had happily hosted them in the island nation's eastern fortress. When the pirates of Galder descended upon Talys to raid it, called into action by the arrival of Caeda, Marth's forces departed the fort to combat the invasion; upon its fall, on the advice of Mostyn, Marth's retinue left Talys to commence its goal to rebel against the domination of Dolhr. The group's first destination was Aurelis, where during their liberation of the country from Macedon occupation, Marth swiftly befriended Hardin, the country's prince, and was entrusted with the Fire Emblem by Princess Nyna of Archanea, symbolising his fate as the world's chosen champion against Dolhr. From there, Marth led the army to reclaim Archanea, then proceeded on to Gra in an effort to find the Falchion said by Cain to have been taken by the country from his father's corpse. Gra fell, yet the Falchion was nowhere to be found, leading Marth to reluctantly decide to detour to Khadein, on Malledus's theory that it had come into Gharnef's possession, instead of pressing on to liberate Altea. The trip to Khadein proved fruitless, with the Falchion and Gharnef still nowhere in sight, and Marth turned his sights on liberating Altea. Upon Altea's fall, Marth learned of his mother's death at the hands of Morzas and that Elice had passed into Gharnef's hands. Despite his grief at this news, and despite Nyna and Malledus suggesting he take a break, he nonetheless greeted the people of Altea, joyful at their freedom. From there, Marth led his army in the conquest of Grust and Macedon, before being sent by Gotoh to Thabes in order to confront Gharnef. With Gharnef's death at the hands of a member of Marth's army wielding Starlight, Marth recovered the Falchion and, at the top of the tower, reunited with Elice, who had been imprisoned by Gharnef for the purpose of using the Aum staff. In the closing days of the war, Marth turned his focus toward Dolhr Keep, where Medeus himself lay in wait. Engaging him in battle, wielding the Falchion, Marth struck down Medeus as Anri had a century before. At the end of the war, on the urging of Nyna, Marth finally confessed to Caeda his longtime affections for her, and the two became engaged. Starting stats and growth rates Book 1 Role As in , Marth and a small retinue of Altean knights had been taking refuge in Talys for the past two years, following the fall of Altea at the hands of the combined forces of Dolhr and Gra in the dawn of the War of Shadows; Talys' King Mostyn had happily hosted them in the island nation's eastern fortress. When the pirates of Galder descended upon Talys to raid it, called into action by the arrival of Caeda, Marth's forces departed the fort to combat the invasion; upon its fall, on the advice of Mostyn, Marth's retinue left Talys to commence its goal to rebel against the domination of Dolhr. The group's first destination was Aurelis, where during their liberation of the country from Macedon occupation, Marth swiftly befriended Hardin, the country's prince, and was entrusted with the Fire Emblem by Princess Nyna of Archanea, symbolising his fate as the world's chosen champion against Dolhr. From there, Marth led the army to reclaim Archanea, then proceeded on to Gra in an effort to find the Falchion said by Cain to have been taken by the country from his father's corpse. Gra fell, yet the Falchion was nowhere to be found, leading Marth to reluctantly decide to detour to Khadein, on Malledus's theory that it had come into Gharnef's possession, instead of pressing on to liberate Altea. The trip to Khadein proved fruitless, with the Falchion and Gharnef still nowhere in sight, and Marth turned his sights on liberating Altea. Upon Altea's fall, Marth learned of his mother's death at the hands of Morzas and that Elice had passed into Gharnef's hands. Despite his grief at this news, and despite Nyna and Malledus suggesting he take a break, he nonetheless greeted the people of Altea, joyful at their freedom. From there, Marth led his army in the conquest of Grust and Macedon, before being sent by Gotoh to Thabes in order to confront Gharnef. With Gharnef's death at the hands of a member of Marth's army wielding Starlight, Marth recovered the Falchion and, at the top of the tower, reunited with Elice, who had been imprisoned by Gharnef for the purpose of using the Aum staff. In the closing days of the war, Marth turned his focus toward Dolhr Keep, where Medeus himself lay in wait. Engaging him in battle, wielding the Falchion, Marth struck down Medeus as Anri had a century before. At the end of the war, on the urging of Nyna, Marth finally confessed to Caeda his longtime affections for her, and the two became engaged. Starting stats and growth rates Book 2 Role Starting stats and growth rates Role In the early days of the War of Shadows, some time after King Cornelius had departed with the Falchion to challenge the forces of Dolhr, Marth remained behind in Altea with his mother and Elice, committing himself to his studies; with much of the Altean army out to war under Cornelius, the defence of Altea was maintained by a Gra garrison. After Gra turned on Altea in the midst of battle, the garrison at Altea did the same, seizing the castle for Dolhr. While Elice stayed behind to buy Marth time, unknown to Marth himself, he fled the castle guided by Malledus, and gathered a small number of Altean knights: Abel, Jagen and Frey. On their way out, Cain returned from the battlefields of Gra to report the death of Cornelius and join Marth's group, and Marth rescued an Altean knight captured and gagged by the Gra forces, Gordin. Gra's King Jiol arrived with a wave of reinforcements, closing in on Marth's group; to ensure the escape of Marth and the others, Frey offered himself as a decoy, dressing as the prince and fleeing to the south, luring Jiol and the reinforcements away. Draug then arrived, having prepared a ship to facilitate the group's escape from Altea, and from there Marth reluctantly fled for Talys, spending the next two years taking refuge in the island nation's eastern fortress under the hospitality of its King Mostyn. From there, as in , when the pirates of Galder descended upon Talys to raid it, called into action by the arrival of Caeda, Marth's forces departed the fort to combat the invasion; upon its fall, on the advice of Mostyn, Marth's retinue left Talys to commence its goal to rebel against the domination of Dolhr. The group's first destination was Aurelis, where during their liberation of the country from Macedon occupation, Marth swiftly befriended Hardin, the country's prince, and was entrusted with the Fire Emblem by Princess Nyna of Archanea, symbolising his fate as the world's chosen champion against Dolhr. From there, Marth led the army to reclaim Archanea, then proceeded on to Gra in an effort to find the Falchion said by Cain to have been taken by the country from his father's corpse. Gra fell, yet the Falchion was nowhere to be found, leading Marth to reluctantly decide to detour to Khadein, on Malledus's theory that it had come into Gharnef's possession, instead of pressing on to liberate Altea. The trip to Khadein proved fruitless, with the Falchion and Gharnef still nowhere in sight, and Marth turned his sights on liberating Altea. Upon Altea's fall, Marth learned of his mother's death at the hands of Morzas and that Elice had passed into Gharnef's hands. Despite his grief at this news, and despite Nyna and Malledus suggesting he take a break, he nonetheless greeted the people of Altea, joyful at their freedom. From there, Marth led his army in the conquest of Grust and Macedon, before being sent by Gotoh to Thabes in order to confront Gharnef. With Gharnef's death at the hands of a member of Marth's army wielding Starlight, Marth recovered the Falchion and, at the top of the tower, reunited with Elice, who had been imprisoned by Gharnef for the purpose of using the Aum staff. In the closing days of the war, Marth turned his focus toward Dolhr Keep, where Medeus himself lay in wait. Engaging him in battle, wielding the Falchion, Marth struck down Medeus as Anri had a century before. At the end of the war, on the urging of Nyna, Marth finally confessed to Caeda his longtime affections for her, and the two became engaged. Starting stats and growth rates Role Starting stats and growth rates Main story Marth is a prominent character in . By the time of Awakening, Marth has become a legendary figure in history, dubbed the "Hero-King"; Chrom and the rest of the Ylissean royal family are descended from him. While Chrom, Lissa, Frederick and the Avatar are returning to Ylisstol from Southtown, Lissa is attacked by a group of Risen, but is saved by a mysterious swordsman bearing the name "Marth". This "Marth" present in the modern day wears a blue mask which obscures the top half of his face, and wields a sword which is nigh identical to the sealed Falchion treasured by Ylisse and currently wielded by Chrom. During an assassination attempt on Emmeryn, "Marth" is revealed to actually be a woman, though it is not until two years later that she reveals herself to be Lucina, Chrom's future daughter, who has returned to the past to prevent the resurrection of the Fell Dragon Grima. Downloadable content Hero-King Marth, from earlier games in the series, returns in the first round of downloadable content.http://www.nintendo.co.jp/3ds/afej/dlc/dlc_0419.html He appears through the use of a fortune-teller's magic Einherjar cards, which summons lost spirits to aid Chrom when battle breaks out in the Outrealm. When Chrom is being attacked by the various heroines that star in games throughout the series, Marth joins Chrom's party as a non-playable unit along with Ike and Alm, who help him to defeat the heroines in battle. The battlefield is based on that of Chapter 1 of . If the mission is completed successfully, Marth joins Chrom's party with his own personal class, Lodestar.http://serenesforest.net/fe13/dlc.html Marth returns in his SpotPass appearances in several other downloadable levels, as both an enemy and an ally. Starting stats and growth rates |def=24 |res=15 |move=6 |inventory= Noble Rapier |skills= Charm Luck +4 Dual Strike+ Dual Guard+ Dual Support+ |sw=A |HP1= |str1= |magic1= |skill1= |spd1= |luck1= |def1= |res1= |strm=+1 |magicm=+1 |luckm=+3 |defm=-1 |resm=-1 |recruit=SpotPass, recruit him for 18,900 G, or defeat him in a skirmish.}} |- |tab2=SpotPass (King Marth) |content2= |skills= Sol Luna Astra Aegis Rightful King |sw=A |HP1= |str1= |magic1= |skill1= |spd1= |luck1= |def1= |res1= |strm=+4 |magicm=-3 |skillm=+2 |spdm=-1 |defm=+2 |resm=-1 |recruit=SpotPass, recruit him for 22,700 G, or defeat him in a skirmish.}} |- |tab3=DLC (Pr. Marth) |content3= |skills= Charm Aptitude |sw=C |HP1=85 |str1=65 |magic1=15 |skill1=65 |spd1=65 |luck1=85 |def1=40 |res1=35 |strm=+1 |magicm=+1 |luckm=+3 |defm=-1 |resm=-1 |recruit=Xenologue: Champions of Yore 1, after clearing the map.}} }} Reclassing options Lodestar }} Growth rates when reclassed SpotPass Growth rates for all SpotPass bonus units are unknown at this time. DLC The DLC Prince Marth is the only bonus unit whose growths are known at this time. Even then, there is a roughly 5% margin of error in the known rates. |tab2=Cavalier |content2= |tab3=Paladin |content3= |tab4=Great Kn. |content4= |tab5=Knight |content5= |tab6=General |content6= |tab7=Myrmidon |content7= |tab8=Swordmaster |content8= |tab9=Mercenary/Hero |content9= |tab10=Fighter/Warrior |content10= |tab11=Barbarian/Berserker |content11= |tab12=Archer |content12= |tab13=Sniper |content13= }} |tab2=Thief |content2= |tab3=Assassin |content3= |tab4=Trickster |content4= |tab5=Wyvern Rider/Wyvern Lord |content5= |tab6=Griffon Rider |content6= |tab7=Mage/Sage |content7= |tab8=Dark Mage |content8= |tab9=Sorcerer |content9= |tab10=Dark Knight |content10= |tab11=Priest |content11= |tab12=War Monk |content12= }} Promotion stat gains E}} |tab2=Barbarian |content2= E}} |tab3=Cavalier |content3= E}} |tab4=Dark Mage |content4= E}} |tab5=Wyvern Rider |content5= E |class=Griffon Rider |hp=3 |str=2 |mag=0 |skill=4 |spd=4 |def=0 |res=3 |move=1 |weaponlvl=--}} |tab6=Fighter |content6= E |class=Hero |hp=2 |str=0 |mag=1 |skill=6 |spd=5 |def=4 |res=3 |move=1 |weaponlvl= E}} |tab7=Knight |content7= E |class=Great Knight |hp=8 |str=3 |mag=0 |skill=2 |spd=3 |def=3 |res=1 |move=3 |weaponlvl= E, E}} |tab8=Mage |content8= E |class=Dark Knight |hp=9 |str=4 |mag=1 |skill=3 |spd=1 |def=7 |res=2 |move=3 |weaponlvl= E}} |tab9=Mercenary |content9= E |class=Bow Knight |hp=6 |str=3 |mag=0 |skill=2 |spd=3 |def=1 |res=2 |move=3 |weaponlvl= E}} |tab10=Myrmidon |content10= E}} |tab11=Priest |content11= E |class=Sage |hp=4 |str=1 |mag=4 |skill=3 |spd=3 |def=3 |res+=- |res=1 |move=1 |weaponlvl= E}} |tab12=Tactician |content12= |tab13=Thief |content13= E |class=Trickster |hp=3 |str=1 |mag=4 |skill=4 |spd=3 |def=1 |res=5 |move=1 |weaponlvl= E}} }} Skill set Like all male bonus units in Awakening, all three versions of Marth have access to all base class and advanced class skills available to standard male units. In addition, certain variants also receive the following as personal skills: Personality and character In spite of his youth, Marth is levelheaded, wise and compassionate, open to trusting and treating with kindness those even others are inclined not to. As a result, he has a tendency to quickly befriend and earn the trust of many people he meets. Marth regularly places the concerns of others and the responsibilities upon him as of greater importance than his own happiness or comfort. On rare occasions, he dabbles in an almost childlike glee in reckless abandon and borderline overconfidence, though his confidence is normally well-founded . Supports ''Mystery of the Emblem'' ''Shadow Dragon'' |bm2=1 |am2= }} ''New Mystery of the Emblem, Heroes of Light and Shadow'' Avatar |classm1=Mercenary |cm1=5 |bm1=11 |am1=18 |portraitm2= |supportm2=Caeda |classm2=Pegasus Knight |cm2= |bm2=6 |am2=13 |portraitm3= |supportm3=Merric |classm3=Mage |cm3= |bm3=5 |am3=10 |portraitm4= |supportm4=Elice |classm4=Bishop |cm4= |bm4= |am4= }} Base conversations Endings ''Ankoku Ryuu to Hikari no Tsurugi'' He's busy restoring his country. ''Mystery of the Emblem'' Book 1 Marth, Altea’s prince He returned to the war-devastated Altea and worked to restore his homeland. Recently he has been making preparations to succeed the throne. Book 2 Marth, Altea’s prince He became the 5th King of Altea and, as the leader of the unified Kingdom of Archanea, worked tirelessly to restore the devastated nations. ''Shadow Dragon'' Marth, Altean Prince Marth returned to war-torn Altea and devoted all his energy to restoring the kingdom to its former glory. He was later crowned king. ''New Mystery of the Emblem, Heroes of Light and Shadow'' Death quote .}} Battle quotes .}} .}} Other appearances Anime Marth appears in the anime adaptation. Being that the adaptation's English-dubbed release predated or any other semblance of official English naming for the cast of Fire Emblem, he was here referred to as '''Mars, an alternate translation which was later superceded by the "Marth" name. His role is much the same here as it was in the game it adapts, with the addition of an exploration of the emotional consequences the fall of Aritia and the loss of his family had on him. ''Super Smash Bros. Melee'' Marth appears in as an unlockable character, by popular demand of the Japanese series fanbase, along with Roy of . Being that no Fire Emblem games had been localized anywhere in the world at the time, the Japanese development team intended for them to be removed from international releases; however, the localization team liked them and left them in anyway, leaving their voices and sound effects in the original Japanese as a reflection of their status as having no English-language presence. The two proved rather popular with international audiences, prompting Nintendo to give the series international releases, starting with . Marth himself still wouldn't get an appearance in an internationally-released Fire Emblem title for seven more years. As with Roy, Marth's trophy in international versions of the game states him to just come from "Fire Emblem", with no further specifications beyond stating it to be a Famicom/NES game; for a time, this led to a widespread erroneous belief among the uninitiated that Marth appeared in the internationally-released Fire Emblem games, primarily given it was called just Fire Emblem in the west, and gave rise to a memetic question often asked (sometimes jokingly) about any given Fire Emblem title: "Are Marth or Roy (or, less frequently, Ike) in this game?" Trophies Super Smash Bros. Brawl Marth reappears in the sequel, , again as an unlockable character, this time with more relaxed unlock criteria. In The Subspace Emissary, Brawl's story mode, Marth is found in his kingdom, which is being attacked by many enemies. He at first goes by himself, but later meets with Meta Knight. Marth then meets up with Ike later. They then join with the rest of the characters. As such, he is turned into a trophy by Tabuu, but is freed by Ness, Luigi, Kirby, and King Dedede, and can be chosen to fight Tabuu if his trophy is saved. Trivia *Marth is one of the most prominent subjects of an unusual spinoff/localization phenomenon, referred to as the "Marth Debuted in Smash Bros." principle by TV Tropes in reference to him. It is the phenomenon where a character debuts in product A'' (in this case, ) but product A doesn't get exported to another country, but then makes a spinoff or cameo appearance in a separate product ''B (in this case, ), which does get exported. More often than not, as in the case of Marth and Roy, the product B'' appearance is enough to spark an interest in product ''A in said country, resulting in it (or one of its sequels, as in the case of Fire Emblem) starting to be localized. *In accordance with this principle, it took almost nineteen years from the first game (March 1990) for Marth to appear in an internationally-released Fire Emblem game (December 2008 in Europe), and eight years between his appearance in the international release of Melee (December 2001) to Shadow Dragon's international release. Gallery File:FESMN Marth02.png|Marth's official artwork from File:FESMN Marth 01.png|Marth's official artwork from File:FESD Marth.png|Marth's official artwork from File:FESD Marth02.png|Marth's official artwork from File:FEMN Marth 01.png|Marth's official artwork from File:FEMN Marth 02.png|Marth's official artwork from File:FEMN Marth 03.png|Marth's official artwork from File:FEMN Marth 04.png|Marth's official artwork from File:FEMN Marth 05.png|Marth's official artwork from File:FEARHT Marth.png|Marth's official artwork from File:Portrait marth fe11.png|Marth's portrait from File:Portrait marth fe12.png| Marth's portrait from Non-Canon File:SSBM Marth.jpg File:SSBB Marth.png File:Ss ssbb marthbust-1.png File:Ss ssbb marthbust-2.png File:Ss ssbb marthbust-3.png File:Ss ssbb marthbust-4.png File:Ss ssbb marthbust-5.png File:Ss ssbb marthbust-6.png Category:Characters Category:Fire Emblem universe